Hard Cases – Incest / Rape / Congenital Anomalies / Life of Mother

After three miscarriages in a row, Angie R. wasn’t expecting her next unborn child to survive to 40 weeks. But she had hope. So when doctors repeatedly told her to abort her baby, she knew the answer was no. She knew she needed to give her baby a chance at life....

Although doctors sometimes suggest an abortion when a woman battling cancer is pregnant, Briana Dannen and her husband Brian decided not to have an abortion and to carry the pregnancy to term to give birth to their healthy baby. The Sherwood, Oregon teacher was diagnosed with cancer about 20 weeks ago but gave birth Monday afternoon. Studies show women don’t need to have an abortion and can safely seek chemo treatment after first trimester of pregnancy. Despite the struggle with breast cancer Briana faces, she gave birth to Harper June Dannen. The baby’s middle name of June came from one of Briana’s aunt, who died after a long battle with breast cancer. KOIN reports that she found out she had an aggressive form of breast cancer and will now get a more aggressive chemotherapy now that Harper has been born. A few weeks ago she said the bond she’s developed with her new daughter is “a great bond because we’ve been through this together, so I’ll be able to tell her one day how strong she was.” That is a conversation she knows well. “Thirty-two years ago when my mom was pregnant with me, she had breast cancer as well. And she’s still here, so that’s an inspiration to me.” Family friend Gail Cutsforth told KOIN 6 News the whole family is doing great. [Ertelt | Portland, OR | LifeNews.com | 3/11/14, http://www.lifenews.com/2014/03/11/teacher-battling-breast-cancer-gives-birth-to-healthy-baby-girl/...

Groups Provide Support, Friendship, and Hope to Parents after Prenatal Diagnosis Receiving a prenatal diagnosis can be the most heartbreaking time in a person’s life. Being told that your child has a small chance at living or won’t live at all can instill the kind of fear in parents that leads to abortion at the advice of their doctor. Unfortunately, many parents of children diagnosed with a condition before birth aren’t provided with the support or resources that would help them to hope and to love their children for the duration of those children’s lives. Thankfully, groups across the country have become available to help these parents honor the lives of their children, no matter how brief those lives may be. Be Not Afraid, a private non-profit, has a mission to provide these parents with practical peer-based support from parents who have been there. No one knows the pain, confusion, and fear that comes with receiving such a diagnosis like the parents who have already walked that path. In addition to connecting parents, BNA helps with the development of new services by training volunteers and providing materials to similar organizations. Parents can contact the organization themselves or family and friends can refer a parent they know. Lily’s Gift is part of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, made up of volunteers who have been trained by Be Not Afraid. These volunteers are made up of concerned parents, as well as professionals who have experience with poor prenatal diagnosis. Through Lily’s Gift, these volunteers assist parents with creating birth plans, will be birth support people, and can refer parents to community-based support....

Doctors had all but convinced Jen and Brad Mckinstry that they should abort their son Colton. He had been diagnosed with hydrocephalus, the buildup of fluid in the ventricles within the brain, and the prognosis was anything but good. In fact, doctors were certain that their baby boy wouldn’t live. But on the off chance that he did survive his birth, doctors said he would be a “vegetable.” “We were told that we should terminate our pregnancy with Colton seven times,” explains Mrs. Mckinstry, “and by three different doctors. "The first time they told us to terminate the pregnancy was the hardest because it was all such a shock to us. The doctor was trying to tell me about his brain disorder and I couldn’t even hear him. Everything was blurry and I felt so light headed. About a week later, we went to another doctor […] and he told us that it would be best to terminate the pregnancy and that Colton wouldn’t make it. If he did make it, he would […] never laugh or smile.” Although they didn’t want to terminate, the couple wondered if that would be what was best for their son. They had been told it would be selfish to allow their son to live and wanted to do what was best for him. Ultimately, they turned to God and realized that Colton wasn’t created just to be aborted, that he was create for a reason. One of the reasons may just be to show the world that doctors can make mistakes too. And in Colton’s case, they made a big one. Two...

Parents of Seven Children Reject Abortion to Have Baby With Trisomy 18 Open-Womb Surgery Treats Unborn Baby’s Hydrocephalus… Parents of Seven Children Reject Abortion to Have Baby With Trisomy 18 Bernadette and Philip Smith were the proud parents of seven children – Philip Jr., Delores, Soma, Titus, Isaac, Israel, and Eden – when they were blessed to learn they would soon welcome an eighth child. But by the fourth month of the pregnancy, during a routine ultrasound, doctors learned there was a problem with the baby. The Smiths were told that their child had Trisomy 18, or Edward’s syndrome. “They told me that she was fatal,” explains Bernadette, “and that she wasn’t going to make it.” http://www.lifenews.com/2013/08/04/parents-of-seven-children-reject-abortion-to-have-baby-with-trisomy-18/ Open-Womb Surgery Treats Unborn Baby’s Hydrocephalus A baby diagnosed with hydrocephalus while in his mother’s womb was born free of the condition two months after doctors operated on his brain during a landmark open-womb surgical procedure....

Derek Paravicini… Musical Savant!!! Derek, a musical genius, and nephew of Camilla Parker Bowles, plays the piano like you've never heard. Yet, he doesn't know his age, nor does he know how to hold up three fingers! Also, he is blind! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ak2jxmhCH1M ‘Lesley Stahl profiles British musical savant Derek Paravicini, whose computer-like memory for music is matched by his creative abilities to play it in any style. ‘ Derek shows the world the gift of life and the gift of a talent that he gives each and everyone of us. Derek was 3 months premature and weighed only 1.5 pounds at birth; yet look what an incredible gift he has become to the world, bringing joy to everyone he meets! What would have happened if Derek had been conceived in the United States! Would he have been given the chance to live? Truly amazing. Be prepared to be entertained… What a powerful story! Every life is precious! The world is a better place because of Derek's incredible gift!! Every Child Deserves the Right to Be Born and Grow to Offer the World a Special, Unique Gift… What do Beethoven, Justin Bieber and Tim Tebow Have in Common? A professor in a college ethics class presented his students with a problem. He said, ‘A man has syphilis and his wife has tuberculosis. They have had four children: one has died, the other three have what is considered to be a terminal illness. The mother is pregnant. What do you recommend?’ After a spirited discussion, the majority of the class voted that she should abort the child… Decisions to keep babies...

Choosing Hope and Grace: Two Babies Who Shared One Heart Mother Dies from Cancer but Spared Her Baby From Abortion Miracle baby: Mother Successfully Battles for Right to Deliver Healthy Baby Despite Terminal Cancer(2009) Choosing Hope and Grace: How Two Babies Who Shared One Heart Momentarily Brought Heaven to Earth Conjoined twins Hope and Grace Klare share one heart. Parents Luci and Chris say they were “grateful” to be given the chance to love these two children. Luci and Chris were barely married three months when, in December 2008, a pregnancy test revealed that they were nine months away from becoming a family. The couple was exuberant. “It was joyful and frightening, but mostly pure elation,” recounted Luci on her family’s blog. But the parents’ elation was short-lived. Two months into the pregnancy a visit to the doctor revealed that Luci was carrying conjoined twins who amazingly shared a single beating heart. The doctor gave the twins one percent chance of survival. Luci and Chris remember experiencing an impossible mix of emotions. They were elated by the thought of having twins but devastated by the thought of losing their babies so quickly. The couple spent a number of days crying in each other’s arms, trying to find a way to make sense of the situation. “God, why us?,” they asked time and time again. Luci found consolation in remembering the loud and clear thumping of her babies’ heartbeat that she had heard during the doctor’s appointment. “When I heard their heart beat for the first time, I was in love.” The echo of that heartbeat in her memory...

Babies With a Fatal or Imperfect Diagnosis Have a Right to Life Doctors Help Baby With Heart Outside Chest After Mom Refuses Abortion Doctors in Houston, Texas reconstructed Audrina’s chest to make room for her heart after her mom refused to have an abortion. This is a beautiful pro-life story about courage and dedication and great to share with friends and family. The video coverage from ABC News can be watched at — http://www.lifenews.com/2012/11/22/doctors-help-baby-with-heart-outside-chest-after-mom-refuses-abortion/ Baby Girl With Rare Heart Defect Saved by Surgery A newborn Texan has proven that when given the chance, LIFE can triumph even against astronomical odds. http://www.lifenews.com/2012/11/30/baby-girl-with-rare-heart-defect-saved-by-surgery/ *** “She was the most amazing little person I could ever put my eyes on. I kissed her and cried …. but most of all I just loved her and held her. I had the 3 greatest days of my life with this little girl and I could not imagine life without knowing her.” – Dawn, whose baby girl Amanda, was born with anencephaly and lived for three days. These days, ultrasound scans give an unprecedented window to the womb. It’s pretty amazing for parents to see their baby moving and growing as she or he comes to birth. But this technology also allows us to see when something is wrong with baby, and, on rare occasions, disorders such as anencephaly or Trisomy 18 show up on the ultrasound. This can mean that baby won’t live for long after birth – though there are some truly astonishing and wonderful exceptions – or that he or she might not make it...

Be Not Afraid — www.benotafraid.net Prenatal Partners for Life — www.prenatalpartnersforlife.org 1heart2souls — www.1heart2souls.org Doctors Give Baby Zero Chance at Survival, He Gives Parents a Christmas Miracle Incompatible With Life? Baby Clodagh Lived for 33 Days and Every Day Was Precious Miracle Joey Doctors Give Baby Zero Chance at Survival, He Gives Parents a Christmas Miracle Aaron and Amy V. were eagerly awaiting the arrival of their second bundle of joy. Already parents to Micah, then 18 months, the couple went to have the routine 20 week ultrasound done for baby number two when doctors discovered some frightening problems with their baby’s heart. They were referred to a specialist at Seattle Children’s Hospital, where the prognosis for their baby only worsened. “They could only see three chambers of his heart,” explains Amy, “three days of testing, hours of ultrasounds head to toe with three hours spent just on his heart. And at the end of it all they were telling us that this baby had so many problems there was a zero percent chance of survival.” … …the couple opted to take their baby boy home with the knowledge that he mostly likely wouldn’t live longer than three months. Matthew spent his first months of life on and off oxygen and feeding tubes, occasionally strong enough to eat from a bottle. Around four months old he became more active – smiling and giggling. Then at six months old, the Vawters brought their son in for a check-up. “They were astounded,” says Amy, “The cardiologist said, ‘Sometimes we speak of miracles in a casual sense, but this...

… As a former student at a medical college, I’ve taken the Hippocratic Oath in order to participate in clinicals. Because of this, I know there is a “first do no harm” clause. … [I]t is that doctor’s job to ‘first do no harm.’ NOT saving the life of a patient is first doing harm, and that’s against the oath. Where I always get into trouble with my “politically correct” friends is in cases of rape. Yes, I am aware that the woman lost her choice in this situation. Most women know someone who has been a victim of sexual assault, (I’m one who personally knows a sexual assault victim), so I’m not devoid of feelings here. However, I don’t believe killing the baby is going to make the rape victim feel any better. Let me cut to the chase here… if we can’t kill the rapist, why can we kill the baby? The baby is innocent. The rapist is a soulless loser who is going to get out of jail in 5 years, and in many cases will repeat the act. If I’m violently attacked, raped, and end up pregnant, killing my unborn child isn’t going to make me feel any less raped and isn’t going to bring me to peace. If my rapist was getting the death penalty… I’d at least feel safer. I’m not saying rapists should get the death penalty. … What I AM saying is, that being pro-life, except in the instance of rape, is one of the most illogical “exceptions” to a rule I’ve ever heard. It’s like saying “This guy has been...

Prenatal Partners for Life — www.prenatalpartnersforlife.org Peter was only 6 1/2 years old when he died; yet he had accomplished far more than could be imagined. By the outpouring of those in attendance at his funeral, it was evident that he had touched far more lives than the number of his years revealed. Mary, Peter's mom, was told by a specialist at the 19-week ultrasound, "You need to have amniocentesis. These markers indicate there could be a chromosomal disorder …one that's imcompatible with life. We need to find out for sure, and soon, so you have more choices." She refused in part because of the possible risk to the child that the amniocentesis would be, and in part because the "more choices" would have meant aborting the child. Peter was born with Trisomy 18, a debilitating chromosomal defect. Some recommended to his parents to wrap Peter in a blanket and let him die. Yet, because of the courage of his parents and the fighting spirit within this baby, Peter lived. For the next 6 1/2 years, Peter moved the hearts of many and defied the "incompatible with life" diagnosis he had received. Peter inspired his mother to found Prenatal Partners for Life — www.prenatalpartnersforlife.org — which provides "support, information, and encouragement for carrying to term with an adverse prenatal diagnosis, and support for raising your child with special needs after birth." The presence of children with genetic abnormalities such as Peter's has become extremely sparse in our society because of the combination of in utero diagnosis and abortion. This is a grave detriment to us all. Peter's life was...

Be Not Afraid — www.benotafraid.net Living With Trisomy 13 – www.livingwitht13.org Prenatal Partners for Life — www.prenatalpartnersforlife.org 1heart2souls — www.1heart2souls.org Be Not Afraid: Hope for Parents Whose Babies Will Likely Die What do you do after finding out that your unborn baby has a defect that is ‘incompatible with life’? Many parents are presented with a dreadful choice: either get an abortion, or carry to term a diseased fetus, who will face untold medical complications and who will likely die anyway. With the dilemma put like this, as many as 80-90% of parents with an unborn baby with a serious medical condition opt for abortion. However, a growing number are uncomfortable with this option. The question is, where do such parents turn for support to help bring their baby into the world? Enter the Be Not Afraid Ministry (BNAM), a specialized pro-life ministry that stands side-by-side with such parents, providing a network of support to help them choose life…however short that life may be. Be Not Afraid provides what Monica Rafie describes as a "ministry of presence" to parents who have received a poor prenatal diagnosis. Monica Rafie, the co-foundress of Be Not Afraid, says that those in her ministry believe that there is essentially no difference between an unborn baby who has a poor diagnosis or a healthy one, since both share “the same dignity before God.” She says she tells parents who have just received bad news about their child “to slow down and take a deep breath.” The most difficult part of the journey is simply receiving the diagnosis, she says. “As absurd as...

Louisiana resident Kandace Smith is the latest hero when it comes to putting the birth and care of her own children ahead of herself — as she, while suffering from cystic fibrosis, rejected abortion to have triplets. Because they didn’t believe she would survive, doctors told Smith she should have an abortion — destroying the lives of her three unborn children to save her own. because of the pressure a pregnancy puts on already-embattled lungs dealing with the medical condition, Smith’s physicians told her they worried about her own life as a result of the high-risk pregnancy situation. But Smith refused and went ahead to give birth to her three children, in what some reports say is a medical first. Ultimately Smith carried the children for 28 weeks before her lungs began failing and doctors delivered the children at Tulane-Lakeside Hospital. “I couldn’t believe that I was actually pregnant, and when the scan showed there were three heartbeats I nearly passed out,” Smith told the London Daily Mail newspaper in a new interview. “I didn’t actually believe it was possible – and there were three babies in my womb.” “I’ve always had such a problem putting on any weight, I only weigh just over six stone, and I didn’t think I could actually fall pregnant,” she added. “When I discovered I was pregnant, I was in shock anyway. But a week later a scan showed I was pregnant with twins, and then another scan later showed it was triplets. We had only just got used to the fact that we were having twins, so to be told that it...

A must see!! This woman sang this for her daughter (who she chose to keep even though doctors wanted her to be aborted). Brought Jennifer Lopez to tears.. and she made it to Hollywood! Paris Tassin Temporary Home http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BP4G0A-oM8s American Idol Contestant: I Was Told to Abort My Baby, but She’s ‘The Best Thing That Ever Happened’ (2011) Single mom Paris Tassin appeared on the American Idol audition in Louisiana last Thursday night where she gave a tearful testimony about her decision to bring an unplanned, high risk pregnancy to term. Tassin was eighteen years old when she found out she was pregnant. An ultrasound revealed that the baby had hydrocephalus, a condition characterized by fluid build-up inside the skull. “[The doctors] told me that I shouldn’t have her, and it wasn’t going to be good if I did,” Tassin said in her audition tape. She refused an abortion, however, and says that her daughter Keira is now a very healthy four-year-old. The only medical complication that resulted from Keira’s condition is hearing loss, for which she needs to wear hearing aids. “She’s the best thing that ever happened to me in my life,” said Tassin, “I’m singing for her.” Tassin impressed judges with an emotional rendition of Carrie Underwood’s “Temporary Home,” a song that talks about the challenges of single motherhood. She was selected to move on to the next level of the competition, which will take place in Hollywood. Tassin’s audition is not the first time that a pro-life story was featured on American Idol. Last year, Maddy Curtis, daughter of award winning pro-life blogger Tripp Curtis,...

Parents who were advised to abort their baby, went against doctors wishes and are now the parents of a beautiful little boy named Issac. Kylie Ingham, 22, was devastated when doctors advised her to abort her unborn baby at 20-weeks because a scan revealed he had major problems with his lungs. Mrs Ingham was inspired to continue with her pregnancy by the story of her husband Matt, 31, who had been given a mere 10 per cent chance of surviving when he was born in 1979. Against the odds little Isaac was born healthy and completely normal at King's College Hospital in London. "We had always discussed if there was something wrong with him, we would keep him. Abortion never entered into my mind," said Mrs Ingham. 'I said to Matt, "When your mum had you and was told there was only a 10 per cent chance of survival, she never gave up on you – this is our baby and surely we should give him a chance". 'That was what convinced me not to give up, the fact that Matt had survived all those years ago. Now we have got the perfect, little miracle." The couple was told after a 20 week scan that their unborn baby was suffering from Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH), a rare condition in which the diaphragm is not fully formed and allows the stomach, bowel and liver to push up into the chest, preventing proper lung growth. One in two babies die of the condition before birth and then again there was only a 50/50 chance he would survive the major surgery needed...

The Tiny Foot By: Joe Wheeler http://911babies.com Several years ago a fragile young woman came to my office, expecting her first baby. One month before she was due, the baby was in a breech position. The death rate of breech babies is high because of the difficulty in delivering the after-coming head and the imperative need of delivering it quickly after the body is born. During the delivery, I waited as patiently as I could for the natural forces of expulsion to thoroughly dilate the firm maternal structures. At last the time had come, and I gently drew down one little foot. I grasped the other, but it would not come down beside the first one. To my consternation, I saw that the other little foot would never be beside the first one. The entire thigh from the hip to the knee was missing. I knew what a dreadful effect this would have upon the unstable nervous system of the mother. The family would almost certainly impoverish itself in taking the child to every famous orthopedist in the world. I saw this little girl sitting sadly by herself, while the other girls danced and ran and played. I could slow my hand; I could delay those few short moments. No one in this world would ever know. The mother, after the first shock of grief, would be glad she had lost a child so sadly handicapped. The little pink foot on the good side bobbed out from its protecting towel and pressed firmly against my slowly moving hand, the hand into whose keeping the safety of the...

Deciding Not to Screen for Down Syndrome By LISA BELKIN Amy Julia Becker is expecting her third child in January. She is 32 years old, and her age, plus the fact that her first child was born with Down syndrome, magnifies her odds of a chromosomal abnormality in this pregnancy, leading her doctors to suggest prenatal testing. In spite of the odds — or perhaps because of them — Amy and her husband have declined the tests. In a guest post today, she explains why. WHY PRENATAL TESTING HARMS AS MUCH AS IT HELPS by Amy Julia Becker My pregnancy has been an easy one. No morning sickness, more than ample weight gain, minimal aches and pains and good rest. Yet as my husband, Peter, and I walked into the doctor’s office for our first prenatal appointment, I said, “I am dreading this visit.” Our daughter, who is now 4½, has Down syndrome. She was born when I was 28. Although there is no known cause for Down syndrome (the presence of an extra 21st chromosome), as soon as I conceived Penny, my chances of having another baby with Down syndrome increased significantly, from 1 in 1,000 to 1 in 100. Those chances only increase further as I age. But my dread as I walked into the doctor’s office didn’t come from the thought that this new baby might have an extra chromosome. My dread arose from the prospect of talking to a doctor about prenatal testing. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends prenatal screening for Down syndrome for all pregnant women, regardless of age. Screening tests...

Book Shows Why Abortion for Young Rape Victims Is Likely to Harm, Not Help: Women Who Tell Their Stories Say Abortion Makes the Situation Worse The news that an 11-year-old girl in Mexico who became pregnant through rape, allegedly by her stepfather, has decided to continue her pregnancy has caused a lot of controversy in recent days. Some abortion advocates have argued that the girl in Mexico is too young to continue the pregnancy and should have an abortion, with some even suggesting that it be done despite her expressed wish to have the baby. Such issues are also a focus during April, which is Sexual Assault Awareness month. But a book about women who became pregnant through rape or incest — including young girls in situations similar to this — suggests that, rather than helping the girl recover, abortion is more likely to cause her further psychological harm. Victims and Victors: Speaking Out About Their Pregnancies, Abortions and Children Resulting from Sexual Assault, is based on a survey of 192 women who became pregnant through rape or incest and either had an abortion or continued the pregnancy. Victims and Victors includes personal stories from 20 women who recalled their experiences and explained how the outcome of their pregnancy affected them. One woman who became pregnant by her father at the age of 15 said that she refused an abortion after becoming pregnant but, at her father's request, was held down on a table and given the abortion anyway. "I was told that an abortion would solve my problem, when it was never really the problem in the first...

This is a personal story. I want to share it with you, because it puts our Sanctity of Human Life ethic in perspective. It certainly sharpened my perspective! It concerns Elly, a girl I delivered in 1993. I had not seen her for 16 years, as they had moved away. I received a graduation picture and a note from her mom in June. In this age of AFP testing, targeted ultrasound, (both of which can be very helpful) and "wrongful birth" litigation and "search and destroy mentality" (both of which are anti-Life), Elly would be recommended for intrauterine destruction by many in our discipline. But go back to 1993: She was her mom's first pregnancy. Prenatal course uneventful. Labor at term complicated by a bad FHT pattern and meconium. Emergency CS was done. I was stunned to deliver a beautiful girl baby with basically no legs. Severe caudal regression syndome. Totally unexpected. Good Apgar. What do you say to the mother and dad? (Maybe you have faced a situation like this.) I just prayed "Oh, Lord, give me the right thing to say, and help me not to say something stupid to these parents who are in shock!" I'll let Elly's mom continue the story in the note I received in June 2010 with her high school graduation announcement: "Dear Dr. ——, When I delivered my daughter back in l993, she was born with a neural tube defect (caudal regression syndrome), and you were very supportive and helpful for my husband Ed and I. Things were not too certain for her when she was born, but I thought I...